Meta’s latest AI app, Muse, is outpacing ChatGPT’s early mobile launch, according to new data. In its first 12 days on the market, Muse has been downloaded more times in the U.S. and Canada than ChatGPT was in the 12 days after its debut.
For a direct comparison, only the iOS figures for both apps in the same two countries were considered. Within that subset, the download counts tell a clear story: Muse has reached 1.8 million downloads, while ChatGPT has reached 1.3 million.
A Fair Comparison
The comparison of these two apps has been hard to make until now. ChatGPT arrived on mobile for everyone, but it was offered only on iOS. Muse, on the other hand, is found in both the Apple App Store and Google Play, though it is available only in the U.S. and Canada.
To make the comparison fair, Apptopia limited the count to iOS alone, and the result still favors Muse: Muse had 359,000 daily active users on iOS, while ChatGPT had 231,000, the same point after its own launch.
The bigger numbers back up the same narrative. Muse has reached 2.8 million total installs globally in its first 12 days, per Apptopia. Its momentum has held; it climbed from No. 2 overall on the U.S. App Store right after launch to No. 1, as Business Insider reported on Friday. That rise placed the app above ChatGPT, the outlet said.
Another firm, Appfigures, said at the time that Muse had crossed 1 million downloads. Apptopia’s data also shows that Muse’s U.S. daily active users are now higher than they were for ChatGPT at the same point after its launch, with 642,000 daily users compared with 231,000 for ChatGPT.
The Data Caveat
Apptopia’s numbers are estimates. The firm can only provide third-party estimates about an app’s downloads and active users; it doesn’t have direct access to Meta’s internal figures. But even a general “ballpark” perspective suggests Muse has a shot at becoming Meta’s newest top app.
The scope of the comparison is limited to the U.S. and Canada markets, and to iOS data alone. That means the global picture of both apps’ performance remains beyond the reach of this data.
The Cross-Promotion Play
Meta already perfected its cross-promotion strategy when it launched Instagram’s Threads, which now has 500+ million users. That success came from heavy marketing and integrations in Meta’s largest apps, including Instagram and Facebook. Muse is likely to get a similar push, given that the AI app can connect with both of those platforms. It also works inside WhatsApp, which could give it another boost.
Apptopia doesn’t have visibility into Meta’s cross-promotion efforts or ads directly. But the firm did note that over 95% of Muse’s users are also Facebook users and 63% are Instagram users.
When asked for figures on Muse’s early adoption, Meta has not yet offered any public figures.
The Early Numbers
Muse has outpaced ChatGPT’s early mobile launch on the same platform, with 1.8 million downloads compared to 1.3 million, and 642,000 daily users against 231,000 on iOS alone. The early numbers look very strong.
The comparison to iOS is the fairest one to make, since both apps were available on the same store in the same two countries. Even there, Muse leads the way. That suggests the app is connecting with users faster than ChatGPT did at launch.
| App | Downloads (first 12 days) | Daily active users (U.S.) | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| Muse | 1.8 million (iOS) | 359,000 (iOS) | iOS only |
| ChatGPT | 1.3 million (iOS) | 231,000 | iOS only |
- Muse has more downloads in its first 12 days on iOS than ChatGPT had at launch.
- Muse has more daily active users in the U.S. than ChatGPT had at the same point.
- Muse reached No. 1 on the U.S. App Store in its first week.
- Meta’s cross-promotion strategy, proven with Threads, likely applies to Muse.
The figures raise a question about what comes next for Muse. Whether it can keep the growth it has shown in its first weeks depends on Meta’s marketing efforts, its integrations, and whether the app continues to draw users from its existing platforms.
For now, the numbers do the talking themselves. Muse has already beaten ChatGPT’s early launch, and it hasn’, and it has not even been out for two weeks.
Source material: “Meta’s Muse is outpacing ChatGPT’s early mobile launch,” TechCrunch.
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